Pinocchio On Both Sides

April 12, 1985

When President Reagan campaigned on a promise not to touch Social Security, he wasn't telling the truth. Most of the country knew that. So why the surprise that he has agreed with Senate Republican leaders to limit cost- of-living increases for Social Security and other federal pensions?

Democrats persist, however, in howling about the broken promise and, most surprising, Mr. Reagan himself is getting a Pinocchio nose trying to hide his untruth.

Even if Democrats are right in blasting Mr. Reagan for his cynical promise last fall, their criticism of his new policy is equal hypocrisy. Remember, it was Walter Mondale who first promised to keep Social Security sacrosanct. Keeping that pledge would have been just as bad for Mr. Mondale as for Mr. Reagan. In fact, the promise was one of many that raised doubts about Mr. Mondale's ability to restrain government spending. Now all the howling from him and Florida's own Rep. Claude Pepper echoes the overpromising that voters rejected resoundingly.

And what is this infamy that has these Democrats buzzing? It's a plan to make sure that in each of the next three years, Social Security checks will increase by 2 percent and no more unless inflation is more than 4 percent. This slows the growth in Social Security benefits and will save a touch more than $22 billion over three years. In a year when the deficit will set a world record, this modest change makes sense.

There is one point where Social Security's overeager defenders are right: The discipline applied to government programs generally -- including Social Security -- must also be aimed at the Pentagon. That's only fair. Yet the Senate and White House negotiators claim to have cut next year's deficit by $52 billion while still giving defense a 3 percent increase after inflation. After nearly doubling the defense budget in the last four years, Congress shouldn't be using any of the savings on Social Security or other programs to give the Pentagon still more.

All the cuts have just one goal: to attack the deficits that threaten all Americans by endangering economic growth and burdening generations to come. It just doesn't make sense to slash and terminate programs so relentlessly and still have little hope of a deficit under $100 billion by 1988. But that's the case now.

So Democrats should stop compounding Mr. Reagan's demagoguery on Social Security with their own. Those are wasted words. Use them on Mr. Reagan's too- indulgent defense budget. That's the way to build security for young and old alike.